Alyssa Healy has delivered outstanding consecutive centuries to guide her team into the semi-finals of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a dominant 10-wicket win over their opponents.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, arriving just a few days after her similarly brilliant 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the identical Visakhapatnam venue. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just under 25 deliveries.
“I felt I was a below par behind the stumps, and perhaps a bit as skipper as well today, but we’ll take the win and progress,” she said.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's chase as the pair added 202 came after possibly the team's weakest display in the field under Healy’s stewardship, with the captain scolding herself in especial for dropping two of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I needed to compensate with the bat, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since data was initially taken on fielding performance metrics in the year 2013, the six missed opportunities marked the team's poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the competition – we’ve been here a while, and it’s an issue we’ll review,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary compiling the first half-century ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's spellbinding unbroken 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed two wickets for 18 runs with four maidens, was key to ensuring the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Delighted with Win that Seals Semi-Final Spot
The Australian skipper was delighted to discover that the triumph, which puts her undefeated team at the top of the group table on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the semi-finals. “That's great news,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her hundred off just 73 balls, the quickest century of the tournament, and ended with 20 boundaries off the 77 deliveries she confronted as she accelerated from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with First Tournament Half-Century
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield struck 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first World Cup fifty off 46 balls shortly after her partner got there off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-best stand by any Aussie pair at a Women’s World Cup.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding display, the captain spilled the simplest of edges off Darcie Brown and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Frustratingly, she also take a clear catch off Brown but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their appeal.
The recalled Brown sent down the quickest balls at the World Cup so far but was still the team's costliest bowling option, conceding 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as Alana King Leads
In contrast, the spinners thrived, spearheaded by King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spin bowlers Wareham (two for 22 off seven) and Gardner (2-48 off nine overs) both chipped in, while Annabel Sutherland consolidated her standing as the tournament’s top wicket-taker with her 2-41, bringing her total to 13.
A batter's 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 deliveries took the team to their record score against the Australians, but the target was made to look easy meat by a side who had chased down 330 against India four days earlier.
“It's fantastic when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a global tournament,” said star performer King. “No doubt it won't end here. We look forward to returning to Indore to face England and South Africa.”
